Being a news reporter a community service, not devoid or hurting folks sometimes

March 09, 2009

By Ebony Horton

Do you ever notice that, at most fast-food restaurants, most of the workers who hand you your food tell you to have a nice day afterward, even though it looks like they could care less whether you do or not?
Sometimes that “have a nice day” might be what one person needs. Sometimes a person doesn’t notice or could care less, and sometimes it might even make someone feel worse, as the person at the window represents another person who just lives life with routine, not with meaning.
Well, though I’m sure there are better analogies to my job as a reporter than this one, it does kind of go along with mine on a higher level.
I’ve always considered being a reporter a community service, an opportunity to provide information to my community that either helps or informs. I started writing for news with the Talon at CHS, and I’ve never had an intention to hurt.
There are, however, those times where things I write do tend to hurt people - whether it hurts their spirits, their image, etc.
My life aside from work is full of emotion - just ask my family and my co-workers.
But at work as a reporter, similar to a homicide investigator or a child advocate who listens to abused children talk about their injuries, what I write or do tends to train me to continue to stay objective.
I can sit through a murder trial like a juror and not form an opinion in the paper, even when the person is guilty. I have to report both sides, and fully.
I can write about a wreck that kills children and only list the facts, even if the story involves alcohol.
I can write a beautiful feature about someone and their family and hope it brings joy to the community, though my job is only to report the situation and let the readers feel however they want to.
And don’t get me wrong, I love my job, and some people can tell by my writing style that I love to write what people perceive the “good” stories. Sometimes the “bad” stories, or the ones about crime, come a little easier and whether unfortunately or fortunately, some people tend to read those more. By the way, if you have any feature story ideas, let me know.
And even though at times what I write tends to hurt people, it’s kind of like the person at the drive-thru window. It might be in some kind of policy for them to tell you to have a nice day, whether it makes you feel good or makes you care at all.
They have a job to do that, at least directly, doesn’t really involve the feelings of who they’re working with. It has to be done while they’re on that clock.
So do I.